The New Orleans Saints placed running back Travis Etienne on IR (injured reserve) this will set him back at least four weeks. New Orleans Saints coach Kellen Moore emphasized that the Saints will see how soon he can return but will monitor the back in the weeks ahead. For now, running back Kendre Miller and Alvin Kamara will take most of the workload.
Travis Etienne injured his hamstring in week three in a loss against the Las Vegas Raiders. He left the game in the third quarter after grabbing his left hamstring at the end of a 16-yard run and did not return. Etienne was already dealing with hamstring issues heading into the game. Etienne leads the Saints with 30 carries and 128 yards. He was coming off his best game as a Saint, rushing for 57 yards and adding another 13 as a receiver before he left the game.
The Saints signed wide receiver Kevin Austin to the active roster from the practice squad in a corresponding move. This will hopefully give quarterback Shough other options as well in the offense since Etienne played both running and was able to be involved in screen plays.
The New Orleans Saints signed Etienne to a four-year contract worth $52 million and also brought back Alvin Kamara which they reworked his contract to a lower base salary pay up to $8.5 million in incentives. Kamara was inactive for the Saints in week one due to a sprained MCL injury that he sustained in training camp.
The Saints play Monday night against NFC South rivals Atlanta Falcons, they will look to get back on the winning side and even up their record to 2-2. The Saints are 1-2 in first place tied with the Carolina Panthers. It will be important for the Saints to bounce back with second year quarterback Tyler Shough.
The New Orleans Saints will march forward with Kendra Miller and Alvin Kamara in the backfield. Head Coach Moore will have to come up with new offensive schemes in the meantime while Travis Etienne recovers from his hamstring injury. The NFC South is a weak division as is, but the Saints have a tough schedule for the next four weeks playing the Atlanta Falcon, Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, and Pittsburgh Steelers. All of these games will be played without Etienne which can either make or break New Orleans season.
Both running backs Miller and Kamara have been with New Orleans long enough that hopefully they can carry the backfield with the absence of Etienne and give the Saints a fighting chance when he does return into the middle of season. He is slated to possbly come back around week nine with the Saints bye week at week eight.
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